Address: 1 Qinghuayuan, Haidian District, 100084 Beijing, Beijing, China
Engineering, Computer Science, Materials Science
Established in 1911, Tsinghua University is one of the most prestigious and influential universities in China and globally, known for its strong programs in engineering and computer science.
Tsinghua is the best-known engineering university in China, with about 50,000 students, 6,000 staff and a campus on the site of a former imperial garden in the Haidian district of north-west Beijing. The grounds sit next to the Summer Palace and a few kilometres from Zhongguancun, the technology district often compared with Silicon Valley. About one student in ten comes from abroad.
The school was created in 1911 as Tsinghua Xuetang, funded by American reparations from the Boxer Rebellion, to prepare Chinese students for study in the United States. After 1952 it was reorganised as a polytechnic, and it later added sciences, economics, law, medicine and the humanities. Chen Ning Yang, who shared the 1957 Nobel Prize in Physics, ended his career at Tsinghua, and the computer scientist Andrew Yao, winner of the Turing Award, teaches the Yao Class, an undergraduate programme in computer science that has become a model for similar courses.
Research priorities include artificial intelligence and big data, quantum information, life sciences and health, sustainable energy and environment, and advanced materials. Tsinghua Science Park, next to the campus, hosts hundreds of companies, and the university has joint laboratories and exchange agreements with MIT, UC Berkeley and Imperial College London. The Schwarzman Scholars programme, a one-year master’s in global affairs, brings graduate students from many countries to the campus.
Teaching is mainly in Chinese, with a growing list of English-taught master’s and doctoral programmes. Chinese students are admitted through the national gaokao exam, while international students apply directly and often need an HSK certificate for programmes taught in Chinese. Tuition for international students is higher than for Chinese citizens, and scholarships exist through the Chinese Government Scholarship and the university itself.
Beijing has a large student population and a subway network that reaches the campus. Rents near Wudaokou are high but shared housing is common. About 300,000 people have graduated from Tsinghua, and its alumni include several of the country’s recent political leaders.
Domains taught:
Aerospace, AI and Machine Learning, Automation, Bioengineering, Bioinformatics, Chemistry, Civil Engineering, Computer Vision, Data Analytics, Ecology and Sustainability, Electrical and Electronics, Engineering, Fluid Dynamics, Industrial Design, Life Sciences, Manufacturing, Materials, Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering, Microbiology and Genetics, Nanotechnologies, Optics, Physics, Process Control, Project Management, Robotics, Signal Processing, Software Engineering, Statistics, Structural Engineering, Telecommunications, Thermodynamics, Transportations
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master, MBA
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Global partnerships with institutions like MIT, UC Berkeley, Imperial College London. Member of BRICS Universities League, Asian Universities Alliance. Strong industry collaborations.
Research:
AI & Big Data, Quantum Information, Life Sciences & Health, Sustainable Energy & Environment, Advanced Materials.
Famous Alumnis:
Xi Jinping, Hu Jintao, Zhu Rongji, Chen Ning Yang
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
6000
Current students***:
50000
Foreign students***:
10%
Cumulative former students***:
300000
Pros
Top-ranked globally, strong research output, excellent career prospects, vibrant campus life.
SJTU offers a comparable education in aerospace, transportations and bioinformatics: it is also a public institution, and runs the same bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba programmes.
Among national alternatives, Huazhong University of Science and Technology stands out for its focus on aerospace, transportations and bioinformatics, and it is slightly larger, at about 58,000 students against roughly 50,000 here, and is also a public institution.
On content, Zhejiang University and this university are close, as both teach aerospace, transportations and bioinformatics; it is slightly larger, at about 60,000 students against roughly 50,000 here, and is also a public institution.
Anhui University is the closest domestic counterpart for bioinformatics, nanotechnologies and microbiology and genetics; it does not run the mba programmes found here, and is smaller, enrolling about 28,000 students against roughly 50,000 here.
Among national alternatives, Xi'an Jiaotong University stands out for its focus on aerospace, transportations and bioinformatics, and it is also a public institution and does not run the mba programmes found here.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
For a study option in Germany with a comparable spread of aerospace, transportations and bioinformatics, Technische Universität München is the reference point: it covers food science and geotechnics as well, and has almost the same size, at about 48,000 students.
UTokyo brings a Japan setting to the same core fields, aerospace, transportations and bioinformatics, and it covers astroscience and marine science as well, and is smaller, enrolling about 28,000 students against roughly 50,000 here.
The closest overseas parallel on bioinformatics, nanotechnologies and microbiology and genetics is Keio University, located in Japan; it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba, and covers astroscience as well.
In Germany, Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen teaches much the same core subjects, aerospace, transportations and bioinformatics, and it is also a public institution and does not run the mba programmes found here.
Warsaw University of Technology in Poland shares the aerospace, transportations and bioinformatics orientation of this university, and it does not run the mba programmes found here and covers metrology and quality as well.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
FAQ
Where is Tsinghua University?
The campus is at 1 Qinghuayuan in the Haidian district of Beijing, next to the Summer Palace and close to the Zhongguancun technology district.
How large is Tsinghua?
About 50,000 students and 6,000 staff, with around 10 percent of students from abroad.
When was Tsinghua founded?
In 1911 as Tsinghua Xuetang, funded by American Boxer Indemnity money to prepare students for study abroad.
What is Tsinghua best known for?
Engineering, computer science, materials science, artificial intelligence, quantum information and energy research.
What language is used for teaching?
Mainly Chinese. A growing number of master's and doctoral programmes are taught in English.
How do international students apply?
They apply directly to the university and usually need an HSK certificate for Chinese-taught programmes. Check the admissions pages for deadlines.
How much does it cost?
International students pay higher tuition than Chinese citizens. Scholarships are available through the Chinese Government Scholarship and the university.
What are the Schwarzman Scholars?
It is a one-year master's programme in global affairs at Tsinghua for students from many countries.
What is the Yao Class?
It is an undergraduate computer science programme led by Andrew Yao, winner of the Turing Award.
Which universities does Tsinghua partner with?
MIT, UC Berkeley and Imperial College London are among its partners, along with many others.
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
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